New
by Katy Kear
Summary: When Sydney notices her dad has been acting different, she pushes to find out why. She gains a new friend as her dad gains something else. When something reminds her of a time in her past she will learn something about herself. A series of one shots that are like episodes. OCs: Sara; Austin, Edward
1. Chapter 1

**_Author's Note: _**_Hey! So I've decided to write a _**_Sydney to the Max_**_ Fanfic. This fic is set when she is 14. Hope you like it! Let me know what you think!_

**Sydney's POV**

I got home from hanging out with Olive after school. It was already 8. I went to the kitchen and Grandma was making dinner…again.

"Hey grandma," I said.

"Hey Noodle," she said.

"Where's dad?" I asked. He always got off from work at 7 on weekdays.

"Hey, I made chicken strips," she said. "Eat up!" She put a plate in front of me.

"Grandma," I said.

"Sweetie, you don't need to worry about your father." I rolled my eyes.

"I'm not worried," I said.

"Yes, you are," she said.

"Okay, maybe I am a little," I said. "But I know you're keeping something from me. You're not supposed to do that, you're my grandma, you're supposed to be doing that to dad for me , not to me for him."

"Honey," she said, sitting down next to me. "Things have their own time of coming out. When your dad is ready, he will tell you himself."

"Fine," I said. Whatever it is has been going on for at least a month.

**No One's POV**

Young Max Reynolds walked into his house. His mom didn't seem very happy.

"Hey mom," he said. "I did a double flip today at the skate park!"

"That's great, honey," she said with no emotion.

"Are you okay, mom?" He asked, concerned.

"Yeah, sure," she said.

"You know you can talk to me about anything, right?"

"Thank you, Max," she said. "Can you please just go to your room right now, and no shenanigans, I'm not in the mood."

"What about dinner?" Max asked.

"Go ahead and order a pizza," she said.

"What about you?" He asked jokingly.

"I'm not hungry," she said.

"Mom, I was joking," he said.

"Yeah, well, I'm not," she said.

"Are you okay, mom?" He asked her. He went to sit by her.

"Just go to you room, please," she told him, raising her voice slightly.

"Okay," he said. He looked back at his mom as he climbed the stairs to his room.

**Max's POV**

I unlocked the door, and went inside the house, making sure the door didn't squeak. I closed it slowly and locked it. Suddenly, the light turned on. I looked and saw Sydney.

"Sydney?" I asked. "You should be in bed."

"And you should have been home _three_ hours ago," she said.

"Syd," I said. "Go to bed, we can talk about this later."

"No, you keep coming home late," she said. _She's noticed this whole time? _I thought. "This has been happening at least a month."

"Sydney, go to bed," I said. "This isn't something you should worry about."

"I'm not going to bed until you tell me what's going on," she said.

I let out a sigh of defeat.

"Fine," I said. "But you have to go to bed after I tell you."

"Deal," she said.

"I've started dating someone new," I admitted.

"That's it?" She asked. "I'm the one that wanted you to start dating again."

"I know," I said. "But I didn't want you getting discouraged if I brought someone new into our lives and it not work out."

"How long have you been dating?"

"Time for bed, Sydney," I said.

"Come on, dad," she pleaded.

"Nope, we had a deal," I said. "Up to bed."

"Fine," she said. "One more question?"

"Fine."

When can I meet her?"

"We'll see," I said.

**No One's POV**

Young Max started his shift at_ Just Fun and Games_.

"Dude, there's something up with my mom," he told Leo.

"What do you think it is?" Leo asked him.

"I don't know," Max said. 'She didn't eat last night."

"Maybe she just wasn't hungry," Leo shrugged.

"That's what she said," Max said. "But she seemed really down too."

"Maybe something upset her," Leo said.

"I hope she's better when I get home," Max said.

"Me too, especially because you're acting different because of it," Leo said.

"What do you mean?" Max asked. A girl dropped her books. Max helped her pick them up.

"Thanks," she said.

"Why do you have books?" Leo asked her.

"I've been studying," she said. "I decided to come and play a few games. I need some fun aside from all of the studying."

"Why are you studying so hard?" Max asked.

"I want to be a doctor," she said. "You have to have really good grades to get into medical school."

"Yeah, but we're in middle school," Max said. "You don't really need to worry about getting good grades until high school."

"True," she said. "But I really like school."

"Yeah, I don't really like it," Max said. She laughed. "Max Reynolds." He extended his hand.

"Alicia Carter," she said, shaking his hand. "What games do you suggest?"

"Well," Max went with Sabrina to show her the games.

**Sydney's POV**

"Hey grandma," I said walking into the kitchen in the morning. "Can I asked you a question?"

"Sure, Noodle."

"Why did you never marry again?"

"Well, Syd, I guess I just never found that one person that was for me," she said. "Did your dad ever tell you anything about his father?"

"Just that he wasn't really around after you two divorced," I said.

"He cheated on me multiple times and ended up leaving your dad and I behind for another woman," she said. "I knew we were better off without him. It was hard on your dad, but you know, he moved on from it. He was a strong kid, and he's even stronger now."

"Thanks mom," dad said, walking into the kitchen. "Do you know what Sydney did last night?"

"Waited up for you until you got home to confront you?" She asked.

"Yeah," he said. "Were you—"

"Yes, I was eavesdropping," grandma said.

**No One's POV**

Young Max walked into his house and saw his mom on the couch. She looked like she had been crying.

"Mom?" he asked.

She looked up. "Oh hey Max," she said. "How was work?"

"Good," he said. "Mom, why were you crying?"

"Don't worry about it, Max," she said.

"No, I'm not leaving until you tell me what's wrong," he told her. He sat next to her. "What's going on, mom?"

She sighed in defeat.

"You really want to know?"

"Yes, I don't like to see you down."

"Your father is remarrying," she said. "It hurt more than you could know when I found out. He had the nerve to send _us _an invitation."

"Mom," he said. "He's a jerk. I got you. We're better off without him. You love me, mom, and I love you. That's what matters."

"Thank you, Max," she said, giving him a hug. "Lets order some pizza. I don't feel like cooking."

"You'll eat this time, right?"

"Yes," she said. "I'm sorry for worrying you. So how was work, really?"

"I met a girl today," he said. "I've seen her in class, but I hadn't talked to her before."

"A girl?" She asked. "Are you going to ask this girl out?"

"What? No," he said. "We're friends, mom."

"What's her name?" She asked.

"Alicia Carter," he said.

"Alicia Reynolds," she said.

"Mom, stop," Max said.

**Sydney's POV**

"So, what's her name?" I asked dad.

"Sara," he said.

"Okay," I said.

"Time to head to school," he said.

I walked out the door with my backpack, followed by my dad.


	2. Chapter 2

**Sydney's POV**

It's been over a week since dad told me he was seeing someone new, and I still haven't been introduced. I went into the kitchen and he was making breakfast.

"Morning, Honey," he said.

"Morning dad," I said. I sat down at the table.

"Here you go, Syd," he said, putting a plate of scrambled eggs in front of me.

"Thanks," I said, starting to eat them. "When do I get to meet Sara?"

"She's been pretty busy," he said. "I'll be seeing her tonight. Maybe she'll be up to coming here for dinner."

"Cool," I said, taking a drink of my orange juice. "What's she like?"

"I think you'll like her," he said. "She loves music, like you. She wants to meet you just as much or maybe even more than you want to meet her."

"Really?" I asked. I took the last bite of my eggs.

"Yeah," he said. He looked at his watch. "Oh, I better get you to school." I grabbed my backpack and we walked out the door.

**No One's POV**

Young Max went up to Alicia who was at her locker.

"Hey, wanna come over to my house after school?" Max asked Alicia.

"Yeah, sure," she said. "To study?"

"Sure," he said. "Whatever you want to do."

"Okay, sounds good," she said.

**Sydney's POV**

I opened my locker and a note fell out. I opened it and read it. My face fell. _You're worthless_, it read.

"What you got there?" Someone asked from behind me. I jumped. I turned around and saw it was Olive.

"Oh nothing," I lied. "Just some old paper." I crumpled it up.

"You okay Syd?" She asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I lied again. We went to science class.

"Hello class," Mr. Davis said. "Today you will be switching partners. I will name off the pairing." I listened as he named off names of my classmates. "Olive and Edward." Edward was a brown and curly-haired kid. He wears glasses, so he gets bullied a lot. "Sydney and Austin." I got really happy. Austin is the cutest guy in school. Messy dirty-blonde hair, green eyes, already starting to be muscular. I went over to where he was.

"Hey, I'm Sydney," I said, extending my hand.

"I know," he said.

"Okay," I said. _He knows who I am!_ I thought.

**No One's POV**

Young Max held the door open for Alicia.

"Thanks," she said.

"So what do you want to do?"

"Study," she said.

"Okay," he said. They opened their books.

"Hey son," Judy said, walking into the living room. "Hello Alicia."

"Hey," they said in unison.

"What ya doin'?"

"Studying, mom," Max said.

"Okay, I'll let you two get back to it," Judy said. She winked at him. He shooed her away with embarrassing.

"Sorry about my mom," Max told Alicia.

"It's okay," she said. "Mine's worse."

"Oh really?" Max asked.

"Yep," Alicia said. They both laughed.

**Sydney's POV**

Austin came over to work on our science assignment. We sat down on the couch and opened our books.

"Could we go somewhere a little darker?" He asked. "It's too bright in here."

"Um sure," I said. "We could go to the garage."

"Wouldn't it get cold in there?"

"True," I said, laughing a little, nervously. "Then um…"

"What about your room?" He asked.

"I'm not allowed to have boys in my room," I said. "And I'm not sure I feel comfortable with that."

"We're just working on homework," he insisted, he said moving closer. I started getting a little uncomfortable.

"Let's just stay in here," I said, scooting away from him.

"Okay," he said.

"Okay it says here that we're supposed to—" I started. I looked up and he was leaning in. "What are you doing?" I backed away a bit on the couch.

"I'm doing my own little experiment," he said. "Kiss me." He leaned in again. I stood up.

"No," I said. "We're supposed to be working on homework."

"Rules are meant to be broken," he said, standing up, himself. He started walking towards me. "Come on just one kiss." He grabbed my wrists and pulled me closer to him.

"No, get out," I said.

"You really are worthless," he said, shoving me to the ground. My mind flooded with realization.

"You wrote that note?"

"Yeah," he said. "And if you tell anyone, you'll regret it."

"Get out," I said.

"Gladly, you're pathetic," he said and walked to the door. He turned his head to look at me. "If you tell anyone what happened here, I won't be as nice as I was here. It won't just be a push. _Got it?_" _Nice? He wasn't nice at all! _I thought. _Not _**_just _**_a push? _I nodded. He walked out the door.

**No One's POV**

"I'll see you tomorrow, Alicia," Max said. He closed the door.

"So how was your study session?"

"It was good," he said. "She has medical books in her bag. She's really serious about wanting to be a doctor."

"Does she like anything similar to you?"

"Yeah, she does ballet," Max said.

"You like ballet?" Judy asked, surprised.

"No, I mean we both like dancing," Max said. "Except I like breakdancing and she likes ballet."

"Oh okay," she said. "I was just thinking that we could go to the ballet together and maybe you could invite Alicia along."

"Could we do that?" He asked.

"Sure," she said. "Trying to impress the future Mrs. Reynolds?"

"Please stop," Max pleaded.

"You like her," Judy said. "A mother can tell."

**Sydney's POV**

I heard the door open, and dad and a woman walked in. She looked pretty young. She's brunette with brown eyes and the same skin tone as my dad.

"Hey Syd," dad said. "I'd like you to meet, my girlfriend, Sara."

"Sara without an 'H'," Sara said.

"Sara, this is my daughter, Sydney," dad said.

"Nice to meet you," we both said.

"I'm going to make dinner," dad said. "Make yourself at home." He went into the kitchen.

"So you're my dad's new girlfriend?" I asked.

"Yeah, I am," she said. "We started dating about two and a half months ago."

"Nice," I said. "So how old are you? Sorry, I'm not trying to be rude."

"No, it's fine," she said. "I'm twenty-six."

"Wow," I said.

"I get that a lot," she laughed.

"So my dad said you like music," I said.

"Yeah, I do," she said. "I'm a musician. I play piano, guitar, bass, drums, percussion, and ukulele."

"Oh nice, I play the bass," I said.

"Nice," she said. "Maybe we could jam sometime."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I'm actually playing a show tomorrow night," she said. "You, your dad, and Judy should come. I could bring you on stage."

"Could I bring my best friend?"

"Yeah, totally!" She said. "Olive, right?"

"Yeah, how did you know her name?"

"Your dad told me."

"Of course he did."

**Max's POV**

At dinner, Sara started a conversation.

"So, I told Sydney that you all should come to my show tomorrow night," she said.

"That would be awesome," I said. "You guys wanna go?"

"Yeah, sure," mom said. I looked over at Sydney. She was looking down a at her food, not even touching it.

"Syd?" I asked.

"Hmmm?" She asked, looking up.

"Are you up to going to Sara's show tomorrow night?"

"Yeah, I'd love to," she said. "May I be excused? I'm not really hungry."

"Syd, we have company," mom said.

"No, it's fine," Sara said. Sydney go up and ran off to her room.

"I'm sorry about that," I apologized to Sara. "She's never like this."

"You don't need to be sorry," she said. "We got along fine before dinner. I was a teenage girl once, maybe it's something else. She did seem in a daze."

"She had a boy over this afternoon, they were working on a science assignment," mom said.

"Why am I just hearing about this?" I questioned.

"Well, I came home to change and I saw them in the living room studying," she said.

"Did he seem respectful?" Sara asked.

"I don't know," she said. "I was in and out."

"Want me to go talk to her?" Sara asked.

"You don't have to," I said. "You did just meet her."

"I want to."

"Okay."

**Sydney's POV**

For some reason what Austin had told me kept going through my head. I was sitting on my bed, trying to drown it out with music. I saw my door start to open, which made me jump. I saw it was Sara. I took out my earbuds.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," she said. "I knocked a couple of times and you didn't answer."

"It's fine," I said.

"So, is something going on that you need to tell someone about?"

"What? No," I said.

You grandma said she saw you studying with a boy this afternoon," she said.

"We were just studying," I said.

"Nothing else happened?"

"No," I said.

"Sydney, listen," she said. "I was a teenage girl once too."

"Nothing else happened," I said.

"From the way you were in a daze implies otherwise, Sydney," she said. "I'm not saying you did anything wrong. In fact, the fact that you didn't eat and don't seem happy at all—If that boy crossed any lines he wasn't supposed to, you need to tell someone. Trust me, I wish I had."

"He just tried to kiss me, okay?" I said, keeping the rest of the truth to myself. "Now can you please leave?" She got up and left the room. I texted Olive about the concert tomorrow and about how much I like Sara. She really cares about me already.

**_Author's Note: _**_Hope you liked this Chapter! I was thinking August Maturo would play Edward. Not sure who would play Austin. What do you think of the story so far?_


	3. Chapter 3

**Sydney's POV**

I met Olive at our lockers on Monday and we started talking about the concert on Saturday.

"Remember when Sara dedicated that song to your dad?" Olive asked.

"Yeah, it was really sweet," I said. "She wrote it for him."

"I can't believe she invited us to go onstage with her!"

"It's not like she's big or anything, Olive," I said. "It was a public park and there were only like thirty people there."

"Still," she said. "What's that?" I looked at what she was pointing at. It was another note.

"Oh that's just some of my notes," I lied. I grabbed it and shoved it in my pocket.

"Okay," she said. "Anyways…I need to tell you something."

"What?"

"I think I like Edward," she said.

"Oh nice!" I said. I looked passed her and saw some guys were picking on Edward. They took his glasses. "Umm, Olive." She turned around and saw it. She marched over to them. I took the chance to look at the note. I don't know what pulls me to look at it. I read it. _You deserve to die alone._

**Olive's POV**

I approached the guys that were picking on Edward.

"Leave him alone!" I told them.

"Ooo," said one of the guys. "The princess is trying to protect the ugly, blind frog."

"You're a loser," I said. "Give his glasses back! He can't see without them!"

"Is that right?" One of the other guys asked. "Why don't I break them, then?"

**Sydney's POV**

I was so focused on the note that I didn't notice what was going on until I heard Olive scream angrily. I looked up and she was throwing punches at one of the bullies. _Wow, she must really like Edward_,I thought. One of the teachers broke it up. The bell rang. _Great, science_, I thought.

I went to my seat and soon Austin sat next to me. I did my best not to look at him. Bad plan. He kicked my leg, which made me look at him.

"About time," he said. "Get my note?" He smiled in a way that gave me the creeps.

"Why won't you just leave me alone?" I asked him in more like a plea.

"You didn't tell anyone," he said. "Right?"

"No," I said. I didn't completely lie, because I didn't tell Sara everything.

"So, where are we going to work on homework today?" He asked. "Your room?" He put his hand on my leg. I froze.

"No," I finally said. I pushed his hand off of my leg. "I don't want you in my house ever again."

"Then mine," he said looking straight forward. I realized the way he was speaking was in a scarily normal voice. He wanted to make people think he wasn't being creepy.

"No," I said. "The library." _There will be other people around_, I thought. _He won't be able to do anything there._

"Fine," he said. He left me alone until the end of class. Then he told me, "By the way, I left some presents in your locker." _More notes_, I thought. I went to my locker and Olive met me there.

"I've been suspended for a few days," she said. "They're suspended for two weeks. Edward is fine. He got his glasses back, and we're going out on Friday!"

"Really?!" I asked. "You were suspended?"

"Yeah, but it's fine," she said. "He's okay." She turned around and went over to Edward.

I opened my locker. There were the notes. I read them.

_You will always be worthless._

I shoved it into my pocket.

_If you tell anyone, you don't want to know what I'll do._

Shove.

_See you at the library. ;)_

Shove. I opened the last one. Nothing prepared me for it.

_No wonder your mom left you behind_.

My eyes started watering and I started hyperventilating.

**Olive's POV**

I looked back at Sydney and I noticed she wasn't breathing right. I rushed over to her.

"Sydney what's wrong?" She sunk down the lockers to the floor. She hugged her knees. She was shaking. She was having a panic attack. I noticed one of the little papers that were in her locker in her hand. I took it from her. I read what was on it.

"Who wrote this?" I asked her.

She wasn't calming down. I sat down next to her and started stroking her hair. She leaned her head on my shoulder. Her breathing slowed. The bell rang but we stayed there. I was supposed to be home by now anyways. When she was calmed down, I decided to ask her again.

"Who wrote this?" I asked.

"I don't know," she said.

"Who ever did is going get my fists of fury," I said. "We should tell your dad about your panic attack."

"No, Olive," she said.

"Sydney," I said.

"No," she said. "I haven't had one in three years. He can't know. I'm fine, Olive. Promise me you won't tell him."

"I promise," I said, not sure if I should mean it.

**No One's POV**

Young Max was at his locker.

"Hey Reynolds," Max heard Dustin, one of the bullies, say behind him.

"Leave me alone," Max said. "I'm not in the mood." He shoved him against the lockers.

"What did you just say to me?" He asked. His lackies, Johnny and Bobby, were behind him. Max couldn't answer him. "Johnny, grab his backpack." Johnny grabbed it.

"Hey, that's mine," Max said. "Give it back!" Dustin punched him in the stomach.

"Shut up," he said. Johnny and Bobby were going through his backpack.

"What do we have here?" Bobby asked, pulling out the ballet tickets. Judy had asked him to hold onto them. She would pick both him and Alicia up after school to go to the ballet.

"Oh, you like the ballet?" Dustin asked, laughing. "What would you do if I just tore these up right now?"

"Give those back!" Max shouted.

"Okay," he said. He went to rip them. Max ran at him and hit him in the jaw. Dustin dropped the tickets. Max grabbed them and put them back in his backpack and started running. They chased him. Johnny and Bobby caught up to him and grabbed him by the arms and held him there. Dustin punched him in the eye. He went to throw another punch when a teacher came out of the teachers lounge.

"What's going on here?" the teacher asked. The three ran away, leaving Max on the ground.

"Maxwell, are you alright?"

"Yes, Mr. Peters," Max told him.

"Max!" Max heard Alicia say. He looked and saw her running to him. "Are you okay?! I went to meet you outside and you weren't there, so I came to look for you. What happened?"

"Dustin and his lackies happened." She went closer to him and touched his eyelid.

"Your eye's already starting to bruise," she said. "Maybe we should skip the ballet." This broke his heart, he didn't want her to miss it because of him.

"No," he said. "I'm fine. Let's go." She helped him up and they started walking to the exit. He looked at her and smiled.

**Sydney's POV**

I went to the library. I was happy to see other people were there. I sat on the other side of the table from where Austin was.

"Got my presents?"

"You're a jerk," I told him. He kicked my leg under the table really hard.

"Don't start calling me names or maybe I won't wait until you slip up."

"I won't slip up," I said.

"You better hope not," he said. "Saw your little breakdown. Funniest thing ever."

"Have you been watching me?" I asked, terrified.

He leaned forward. "You _really_ want to know the answer to that?"

I looked at my science book. I wanted to cry. I was scared, but I was even more scared to tell anyone. I wanted to leave, but my dad was at work and grandma was in class. I took out my phone. He watched me as I typed. I texted Olive and asked her to ask her mom to pick me up from the library and then to call me. She said her mom went to work right after she took her home. Her brother couldn't pick me up either. I texted Sara and asked her to pick me up from the library and asked her if she could call me and stay on the phone with me until I got in her car. I wanted to make sure he wouldn't try anything. I deleted the text after she texted me _I'll be right there_. My phone rang after a bit.

"Hey," I answered. "Yeah, I'll be right out." I looked back at Austin. He was glaring at me. I grabbed my book, put it in my backpack, and walked out of the library, still on the phone.

Sara drove us to her house and we went inside.

"Nice house," I told her.

"Thanks," she said. "Want a soda?"

"Sure," I said. I sat down.

"So what was that about?" She asked, handing me the soda.

"What do you mean?"

"Syd, no one asks someone to pick them up and call them and _stay on the phone with them_ unless there's something wrong," she said. "Trust me, I've had to do that many times." She sat next to me.

"Can't a girl just want to hang out with her dad's girlfriend?"

"Syd, come on," she said. "You can talk to me. What's going on?"

"I don't want to talk about it," I said. "I _can't_ talk about it."

"Who is this guy, Sydney?" She asked. "Did he threaten you?"

"I can't," I said. Her eyes suddenly moved to my leg.

"Where did that bruise on your leg come from?" I looked at my leg. His kick left a bruise.

"I hit it on something," I said. She didn't believe me, I could tell by the way she was looking at me.

"You don't have to talk about it right now," she said. "But the only way this can be stopped is if you tell someone."

"Can I stay over here tonight?"

"I'll ask your dad if it's okay," she said.

"Please don't tell him anything," I said.

"I won't…for now," she said. "But you need to tell someone because if something bad is happening to you, it could be very dangerous if you don't." There was silence except for the ding of her phone. "He said you can stay over."

"Thanks," I said.

When I went to the guest room after we ate, I got into bed and stared at the ceiling. Even though I know I shouldn't, I let my thoughts run wild.

**_Author's Note: _**_I hope you liked this chapter! What do you think is going to happen with Sydney? Do you think she'll tell someone? Who do you think she'll tell if she does?_


	4. Chapter 4

**Sydney's POV**

It's Friday and I went to science class early to talk to Mr. David.

"Hey Sydney," he said.

"Hey Mr. David," I said. "I wanted to talk to you about something."

"What about?"

"I know I asked the other day," I said. He sat down in his seat and started looking through tests, "but can I please have a different partner."

"Sydney," he said. "It would be unfair to switch with anyone else. They all have been getting along with their partners."

"I understand that," I said. "But please, I'm desperate." He looked up from the tests.

"Desperate?" He asked. "What's going on? Why don't you want to be partners with Austin?"

"He makes me uncomfortable," I admitted. "Please tell me a way to not be his partner."

"Well, you could do the work independently," he said. "How does he make you uncomfortable?"

"I—," I began. Students started filing into the room. I sat down in my seat. Austin made his way to the seat next to me.

"Mr. Denver," Mr. David said. Austin stopped and looked at him. "You will sit at the other table. You and Ms. Reynolds will no longer be working together." Austin glared at me and sat down at the other table.

**No One's POV **

Young Max went to his locker and got his books for his next class. Leo met him at the locker.

"Hey dude," Leo said. "How'd that Ballet go with Alicia?"

"It was actually pretty cool," Max said. "Breakdancing and Ballet are actually pretty similar. They both take a lot of focus."

"How's that going?" Leo asked referring to Max's healing black eye. Judy had told him about what happened with Dustin over the weekend.

"It's getting better," Max said. "Alicia covered it up with makeup before we went into the Ballet."

"You wore makeup?" He asked. "Better not let Dustin find that out."

"I don't care what he does," Max said shrugging. "I would have taken the beating he was trying to lay out the other day if it meant it would have saved those tickets."

"Dude, you're whipped," Leo told Max.

"Don't start sounding like my mom. We're not dating," Max said. "Anyways, she almost gave up the Ballet for me."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I was wrong," Leo said. Max nodded in agreement. "Both of you are whipped."

"We're friends, Leo," Max said. "I just wanted to do something nice for her, you know."

"You're best friends," he said. "Soon she's gonna take my place as your primary best friend. Then you'll watch as she walks down the aisle and both of you will say 'I do'."

"Shut up," Max said. "No one will take your place. And Alicia and I are friends, that's it."

"Denial," Leo said, walking away. Max shook his head and walked to class.

**Sydney's POV**

It was the end of school, and I was putting my books in my locker. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up. I turned around and saw Austin, who was too close for comfort. I looked around…we were the only ones in the hall.

"You told Mr. David, didn't you?" He questioned me in the lowest voice I had ever heard.

"No, I didn't," I said.

"Then why aren't we partners anymore, huh?" He asked.

"I told him I'm uncomfortable around you," I said. "I didn't tell him anything else. I swear." His hand came up which made me flinch and _I saw the car and felt the impact again_. His hand landed softly on my cheek, but then he pressed his thumb on the bottom of my jaw really hard.

"You shouldn't have told him that," he said. "But good girl, you keep your mouth _shut_." He walked away. I wanted to cry. I shut my locker and went outside. I was relieved to see Sara's car. I haven't been walking home since the day she picked me up at the library. I hurried to the car and got in.

"Hey Syd," she said. "I have another show tonight. Want to come?"

"No, I don't really feel like it," I said. "Sorry."

"It's fine," she said. "I don't expect you to go to every show." She pulled into my driveway. "Hey," she said. "What happened here?" She touched the bottom of my jaw. I had no excuse. I didn't say anything. "Syd?" I just looked forward, afraid to look at her. If I did, I'd break down. "Want me to go inside with you?" She asked. I nodded. We got out of the car and went inside.

**No One's POV**

Sabrina hurried to catch (Young) Max as he was skateboarding home.

"Hey," he said. She was trying to catch her breath. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she said. "Dustin just freaks me out."

"You too?" Max asked.

"He won't stop asking me out," she said. "I've told him I'm not interested. He started chasing me. I saw you and cut through a lawn to get to you. I think I lost him."

She looked behind her.

"Why was he chasing you?"

"He doesn't take 'No, I wouldn't go out with you if Hell froze over' very well," she said. Max laughed, and then they both laughed together. "I wanted to get him to understand no."

"Wait, why did you want to get to me so badly?" He asked.

She shrugged.

"You make me feel safe," she admitted.

"_I _make you feel safe?" Max asked surprised. "I'm not very tough. I mean," he motioned to his black eye.

"Yeah, but I mean you care about me," I said. "You're my friend. You invited me to go to the Ballet with you. And I'm sure you'd at least try to protect me if it came to it. You're a good guy, Max."

"Thanks, Sabrina. So you don't like him at all?" Max asked.

"I would never like a jerk like him, especially when he hurts my friends," she said. "I'd rather have a good guy…like you."

**Max's POV**

I was at the bike shop. A man about my age came in. I recognized him right away.

"Hey, Max!" He said.

"Leo!" I said, embracing him. "Why didn't you tell me you were in town?!"

"Wanted to surprise you," he said. "Where's your daughter…_Cindy?_"

"_Sydney_," I said. "She's at the house. My girlfriend picked her up from school. How's your wife and daughter doing?"

"They are doing great," he said. "Isabella loves ballet. And_ girlfriend_?"

"Well, she is a five year old," I said. "And yeah. Her name is Sara. Her and Sydney seem to get along really well. Sara thinks something is wrong with Sydney, like something is happening to her, but we can't get her to open up."

"Like when her mom died?"

"No, not that bad, she didn't go mute on me this time," I said. "But she won't even acknowledge that anything is wrong."

"Do you think maybe those nightmares are back?" Leo asked.

"No, she would tell me if that was happening again."

**Sydney's POV**

We watching a tv show and Sara paused it.

"You want to tell me how you got that bruise on your jaw?" She asked. I looked down. "Please Syd, talk to me."

"I want to, but I can't," I said. "You don't understand."

"Yes, I do, Sydney," I said. "I have been abused and harassed by guys before. I've even been stalked, Syd, okay? Your dad is honestly the best guy I've been with. You can't keep this to yourself. At least tell me this guy's name." I stayed silent and didn't look at her. "I'll be in the kitchen." She sounded upset.

I got a text from Olive.

_Hey, Edward told me you aren't partnered with Austin anymore. What happened? I thought you liked him._

I texted her back.

**_No, I don't and I never will._**

I turned my phone off. Sara came back in.

"Okay, with the executive decision with your dad, you _are _going to the show with me to tonight."

"I told you I don't want to go," I said.

"You have to do what your dad says," she said. "And you need to get out. You can't stay cooped up by yourself obviously terrified of something. You won't tell me what's wrong. Music is your outlet isn't it?"

"Yeah."

"Me too. Grab your bass and make sure it's tuned," she said. "Whatever you are feeling, let it out tonight, and have fun doing it."

"Thanks Sara," I said, and went upstairs to get my bass.

**Max's POV**

Sara texted me and told me that whatever is going on with Sydney is getting worse. She asked my permission to make Sydney go to her show with her. I told her it was a good idea. I drove to the concert after work and watched Sara and Sydney play their hearts out. The last song, Sara got Sydney to sing with her. They did the song "In My Bed" by Sabrina Carpenter. I could see Sydney reflecting off of it. She sang with such emotion. I hope she'll talk to us soon.


	5. Chapter 5

**Sydney's POV**

Olive was knocking on my bedroom door. It was 7 in the morning. I hardly slept last night. And even though I had fun at the concert on Friday, it all came back to me that night at bed time-the last note he had put in my locker, especially. I had the nightmare again. I never stopped having them, I just told my dad that I did. I hadn't answered Olive's texts since I had turned off my phone.

"Come on, Sydney, we need to go to school," Olive said through the door. "Let me in, please." I got up off of my bed and unlocked the door. She came in.

"I don't want to go to school," I said.

"That's crazy talk," she said. "We have like three tests today."

"How did your date go on Friday?" I asked.

"Great!" She said. "I think he really likes me!" She was smiling really big. "Now get dressed so we can go to school!"

**No One's POV**

Young Max was walking with Alicia and Leo down the hall.

"So are you going to come to the arcade after school?" I asked Alicia.

"Yeah," she said. "I can study and then play games."

"Maybe you should play games and then study," Leo suggested.

"I guess that would make sense," she said.

"So what kind of doctor do you want to be?" Max asked her.

"I want to be a cardiothoracic surgeon," she said.

"That's someone who does surgery on the heart, right?" Max asked. He had read some of her books when she left them open.

"Yeah, that's the cardio part," she said, "but they also do surgery on the lungs, esophagus, and other organs in the chest."

"Won't that be a lot of work?" Leo asked.

"Yeah, but I'm up for the challenge," she said. "When I set my heart on something, I don't give up."

"Neither do I," Dustin said from behind us. "Hey beautiful, what you doing hanging out with these losers?" We turned around. "You need a real man."

"Says the boy who got held back _twice_," she said. Max and Leo started laughing.

"Come on, Johnny, Bobby," he said. "Let's go." They walked passed them. "See you around," Dustin said, looking at Alicia in a way Max didn't like.

"You better stay away from her," Max said, not missing a beat. The trio stopped in their tracks. People started gathering around. Leo looked at Max worriedly, taking a step back. Alicia stayed right next to Max staring at Dustin and his lackies. They turned around and Dustin walked up to Max.

"And what if I don't?" Dustin asked Max. "What if I said that I'm not going to ever leave her alone. What are you going to do you pathetic piece of trash?" Max stood there looking at Dustin, anger boiling up in him. "I thought so." He started to turn around.

"This," Max said. Just as Dustin started turning his head back to him, Max threw a punch at his face. He hit his nose. The crowd that had formed cheered.

"Get him!" Dustin said, holding his nose. His lackies went for Max. From the corner of his eye, he saw Dustin going towards Alicia.

"Get away from her!" He yelled. He punched him in the jaw and they both started throwing punches. He looked back at Alicia who was protecting him and Leo by keeping the lackies away from them.

"Max, watch out!" she yelled. He looked and Dustin hit him in the head. He went down.

**Sydney's POV**

I went my locker after English to get my book for science class. There was another note. It read: _I wonder…_.

I crumpled it up and walked to class.

"Today, we'll be watching a video to go over speed," Mr. David said. "Thank you, Austin, for helping me find a video about speed." I looked over and Austin was staring me down. A chill went down my spine.

The video started. There was a car in the video driving down the street. It showed the car's speedometer, it kept going up. It showed the person wasn't paying attention. It shows the car from the outside. Then it shows another car from the inside. Then it shows from the second driver's point of view, the first car hit the second one. My heart started beating fast. It went black. I started having a flashback:

_I was 7, riding in the car with my mom. She let me sit in the front seat. We were going to the fair, it was one of her days off. I was talking about how fun it was going to be. We were having a girls' day. We stopped at the red light. It went green. Mom started driving again. I looked out her window and saw a car that wasn't stopping. 'Mommy!" I yelled. I felt the impact. I saw my mom's eyes close. I held her hand. Then it all went dark._

**Olive's POV**

I saw the car crash on the screen. Then I heard a thud. I looked back and didn't see Sydney.

"Sydney!" I yelled and ran back to her seat. Mr. David stopped the video. I saw Sydney. Her body was shaking violently. She was having a seizure. "Mr. David! Sydney's having a seizure! Call an ambulance!" I yelled. He immediately got on his phone. I rolled up my jacket and put it under her head.

**No One's POV**

Judy rushed into (Young) Max's ER room. Alicia and Leo were standing next to his bed.

"What is this I hear about you getting into a fight at school?!" She questioned him.

"Mom," Max said. He had his arm in a sling, a black eye, and a concussion.

"You are grounded for a month," she said.

"Wait, Ms. Reynolds," Alicia said. "He was protecting me."

"What do you mean?"

"Dustin Rivers has been harassing me," she said.

"You mean the kid that gave him the blackeye the other day?"

"Yes," Alicia said. "Max told him to stay away from me. Dustin said that he wasn't going to and asked what he was going to do about it. Max punched him."

"Can you two give me a minute with Max?" Judy asked them.

They left the room.

"You _like_ her," she told Max.

"No, I don't," Max said.

"Then why would you protect her like that?"

"She's one of my best friends," he said.

"Mmhmm," she said. "Anyways, with the facts coming clear, you're grounded for…one day." Max smiled.

**Max's POV**

Mom and I went to the hospital. Sara came in right after us. Olive had called me and told me Sydney had a seizure during science class. They let her ride with her.

"What happened, Olive?" I asked.

"Mr. David played a video in class to demonstrate speed," she said. "It was about cars. One of the cars crashed into the other one. I heard a thud, looked back, and didn't see Sydney. I rushed back to her seat, and she was having a seizure. I told Mr. David to call for an ambulance."

I put my hands over my face. "Oh my…"

"What is it?" Sara asked.

"Sydney was in the vehicle when her mom was hit by the car that killed her," I said. "I thought she wasn't affected by it anymore. She can talk about her without breaking down. She stopped having the panic attacks and nightmares."

"Actually…" Olive said. I looked at her. "She had a panic attack last Monday. She told me not to tell you."

"What?" I asked. "Wait, what triggered it?"

"Someone left a note in her locker that said _No wonder your mother left you behind_." My mouth went agape. The doctor came out.

"Hello Max," he said. "I'm sorry to meet here again under this type of circumstance."

"How is she, Dr. Robinson?" I asked.

"She's awake," he said. "She told me that she has been having nightmares that started shortly after the accident six years ago. She also said she had a flashback during the seizure and has them often. She did not know she had a seizure though."

"She said the nightmares stopped," I said. "She has flashbacks?"

"Yes, it feels as if she is reliving the event," he said.

"What do you think is wrong with her, Dr, Robinson?"

"To be frank with you, Max," he said. "There is no doubt in my mind that she has PTSD. She has had it for a while. If it was caught earlier, it probably wouldn't have gotten this serious. The seizure that she experienced is called a dissociative seizure, being an emotional response to the memory, trying to hold it back from resurfacing."

"What can we do?"

"Do your best to keep her away from triggers," he said. "I will prescribe her medication that should help."

"Thank you, Dr. Robinson," I said.

"She should be able to go home by the end of the evening."

**_Author's Note: _**_Just in case you didn't catch it from their interaction, Dr. Robinson is the same Doctor that was there when Sydney was brought in after the accident. I realized that Sydney would be 13 still (I had put 14 in the start of this). I'm not sure when her birthday would be. Maybe I'll do a chapter for that. She is in eighth grade. I didn't start at the start of the school year. It's probably in early or late October by now. I'll figure it out. How are you liking the friendship between (Young) Max and Alicia? Do you think Judy is right?_


	6. Chapter 6

**_[The Thursday After]_**

**Sydney's POV**

I walked into school with Olive. Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at me. I walked to my locker afraid to open it. I opened it, and, to my surprise, there were no notes. I let out a sigh of relief. Mr. David walked up to me.

"Hello Sydney, are you feeling better today?" He asked me.

"Yes," I said. "I am. Thanks."

"I'm very sorry for playing that video," he said. "I had no idea about your past experience."

"It's alright, you didn't know," I said.

"Austin had no idea either," Mr. David said. _That's right, Austin helped him find the video_, I thought. "By the way, you never told me how he has made you uncomfortable. I'm sure it was just a misunderstanding. Maybe you can talk about it."

"What?" Olive asked.

"It doesn't matter now," I said, feeling defeated. _He's his teachers' pet now. He won't believe anything I say about him. _I walked away. Olive followed me.

"What was he talking about?" She asked me, concerned.

"Nothing," I said.

"Syd," she said.

"Nothing, Olive," I said. "Just go to class. I'll meet you there."

"Okay," she said wearily, walking away.

I went to the girls' locker room and sat down on the floor up against the gym lockers. I wrapped my arms around my legs and I started bawling.

**No One's POV**

Young Max and Leo were walking down the hall.

"So are you going to asked her?" Leo asked Max, pointing at the school dance poster.

"Yeah," Max said. "I hope Alicia will say yes."

"She will, Max," he said. "You're her best friend, and you like each other."

"Thanks Leo," Max said. He rounded the corner towards Alicia's locker. Once he saw her, he stopped in his tracks because she wasn't alone. Danny Shapiro, a popular guy, (jet-black hair, Caucasian skin, and a leather jacket) was standing in front of her with a single rose.

"So I'll pick you up at 7 on Saturday?" Danny asked her.

"Yeah, that sounds great," she said. She smiled. Max's face fell. His heart was broken. He turned around and pushed through the people that had blocked his way. Alicia saw the back of his head.

"Max?" She asked. He kept walking.

"What are you doing?" Leo asked. Max started walking towards the school exit. "Where are you going, dude? You need to ask Sabrina."

"Someone already asked her," Max said, upset. "I'm out of here."

"You can't just walk out of school," Leo said.

"Watch me," Max said. He walked straight out the door.

Max was sitting at home, and Judy walked in.

"Get up off that couch and go back to school," she ordered him. He didn't move. "Now, Mister!"

"No," he said.

"Excuse me?"

"I'm not going back," he said. "I'm humiliated. How did I ever think I had a chance with her?"

"What?" Judy asked. "Are you talking about Alicia?"

"Yes," he said.

"Ooo, I knew you liked her!" She said.

"Yeah, well it doesn't matter now," he said. "She's going to the dance with Danny Shapiro."

"You still need to go back to school," she said.

"Please, don't make me," he said. She saw how miserable he was.

"Okay," she sighed. She sat next to him.

"Aren't you supposed to be at work?"

"I asked for the rest of the day off," she said.

**Max's POV**

Sara walked into the bike shop.

"Hey," she said. "I brought you lunch."

"Thanks," I said, kissing her on the lips.

"How's Syd doing?"

"She seems to be doing better with the nightmares and she hasn't had another seizure," I said.

"What about with what she's dealing with?" She asked. "Has she talked to you?"

"No," I said. "She still won't open up."

"I really think it has to do with whoever that boy was that was over at your house the first day I went over for dinner," she said. "He had to have done something."

"The only way we'll know is if she tells us," I said.

"I know," she said.

**Sydney's POV**

I've been sitting in the locker room, skipping my classes. I couldn't take the weight holding me down. _I have to tell someone_, I thought. _He won't know. _I took out my phone, still trying to hold back tears, and dialed Sara's number. She answered after a few rings.

"_Hey Syd_," She said through the phone. "_What's up? You're in school, right? Why are you calling me from school?_"

"I just need to talk to someone," I said, sniffling. I could hear my dad's voice in the background. "Where are you?"

"_I'm at your dad's bike shop_," she said. "_Are you crying? What's wrong?_"

"I can't do this anymore," I said.

"_What do you mean, Syd? Can't do what anymore?_" She asked. "_Where are you?_" I realized how it sounded to her.

"I'm in the girls' locker room," I said. "I can't hold on to this pain anymore. I have to tell you what's been going on. I have to tell you _everything_."

"_What has he been doing to you?_" She asked.

"The day I met you, I got a note in my locker that said _You're worthless_," I said. "Then I was partnered with him for science."

"_With who, Honey?_" She asked. She wanted me to say his name.

"Austin, Austin Denver," I said. "Then when we went to my house to do homework, he tried to kiss me. When I refused _twice_, he told me that I _really am worthless_, and shoved me to the ground. Then he told me if I told anyone it wouldn't _just be a push_."

"_Okay what else has he done?_" She asked.

"He put his hand on my leg, and—" I stopped talking because I noticed something in my backpack pocket. I reached in and pulled out little papers, more notes. "That's impossible." I almost whispered. I opened them one by one.

**_Would you rather be awake or unconscious when I kill you? You know, for when you slip up._** I started hyperventilating.

"_Sydney? What's wrong_?"

**_Liked my car video? Quite a reaction from you._**

**_Nice yellow blouse._** That's what I'm wearing today.

**_Nice room. Should have introduced it to me earlier._**

**_Heard you have PTSD. You looked so vulnerable in that hospital bed, too bad too many people were around for me to take advantage. _**

"Sara, he's been stalking me," I said. "I just found notes in my backpack. He said he'd kill me if I slipped up. What if he finds out?!"

"_He won't, the cops are on their way to arrest him_," she said. "_We're on our way to pick you up. Meet us at the front of the school. The Principal has already been called._"

"Okay, I will," I said.

**No One's POV**

Alicia is walking around the dance looking for Danny.

"Hey, have you seen Danny?" She asked around. Everybody said "no".

She went out into the school lobby and heard a girl giggling. She walked down the hall towards the sound. She saw Danny making out with another girl. They stopped and looked at her. He whispered something to the other girl and then walked up to Alicia.

"What are you doing?" He asked her. She was shocked.

"We're at this dance together," she said. "What are _you_ doing?"

"I just needed someone to look good on my arm," he said. She was confused. "A lot of people think I'm racist. Having you on my arm disproved that."

"You used me?" She questioned him. "I thought you—"

"Liked you?" He laughed. "You really think I'd date a black girl?" Her eyes started filling up with tears. She walked away from him and towards the doors.

"Where are you going?" He asked. "I'm your ride home." She walked out of the school.

Max was sitting in the living room in his black sweatpants and white T-shirt.

"You should have went to the dance," Judy said.

"I didn't want to," Max said.

"I got you that blazer," she said. "You better use it at some point."

Someone knocked at the door. Max got up and opened the door. It was Alicia, in her dress, in tears.

"Alicia?" Max asked. He immediately moved out of her way. She walked in. "Are you okay?"

"No," she said. She walked to the couch and sat down.

"What happened at the dance, Alicia?" Judy asked. "Why are you crying?"

"I'm an idiot," she said. "Danny never liked me, he was just using me for his image."

"You have never, nor will ever be, an idiot," Max said. "That's my job." She laughed. "He's the idiot."

"I didn't even get one dance," she said.

"Well, that's actually a good thing," Max said.

"How?" She asked.

"Because he wouldn't have deserved that dance."

"True," she said. "Still would have been nice to dance with someone."

"Mom, can I see you in the kitchen?" Max asked his mom. They shared a look. She followed him in there.

"He broke her, I'm going to put the pieces back together," Max said, putting on the blazer.

"That is the sweetest thing I've ever heard you say!" Judy exclaimed. "Go get her, tiger."

Max walked out of the kitchen, and up to Alicia.

"Ms. Carter," he said. She looked up at him. "May I have this dance?" He reached out his hand for her to take. She took it and they started dancing as Judy put the radio on. Alicia looked Max in the eyes, then laid her head on his chest as they danced.

**Sydney's POV**

I walked towards the locker room exit when Austin appeared in the doorway, blocking my way out.

"Thought I told you not to tell anyone," he said.

"I-I'm sorry, I had to," I said. He started walked towards me. I tried to get passed him. He grabbed me and shoved me, hard, into the lockers.

"You really thought I wouldn't follow you here to make sure you kept quiet?" He kicked me in the ribs.

"The police are on their way," I said.

"Then I better hurry," he said. He grabbed me by the hair and pulled me up. I screamed. He kissed me in the middle of my scream. " I wouldn't do that if I were you." He took shoe string out of his pocket. "Give me your wrists," he said. I was too scared not to listen. He tied my wrists to one of the locker doors. Then he gagged me. He grabbed a bat from the corner of the room. I tried to scream but the gag stopped me. "Let me see the fear in your eyes," he said. "If I had more time…" He looked me up and down. "Say goodbye, Sydney." He raised the bat. My eyes started filling with tears again. Police burst through the door. They grabbed the bat from him and put him in handcuffs. They cut the shoe string and took me out to my dad, grandma, and Sara. I hugged all three of them before I was told to get checked out at the hospital.

**No One's POV**

"Yeah Maya," Judy said into the phone. "He definitely made her night better. Yeah, I'll tell her—" Judy peaked in the living room and saw Max and Alicia asleep on the couch. "You know what? I think it'd be better if she stays over," Judy said. "Yeah, I'll take her home in the morning. Okay Maya, have a good night." She hung up the phone. She went into the living room and put a blanket over the both of them. She grabbed her camera and took a picture of them. She picked up his blazer off of the floor and took it with her up the stairs to put in his room.

**_Author's Note: _**_Hope you liked this chapter! What did you think of the young Max parts? _


	7. Chapter 7

**_[November 8_****_th_****_, 2019]_**

**Sydney's POV**

It's been a couple weeks since Austin got arrested. I've started going to a therapist because I started getting nightmares of him.

On the brighter side, it's my birthday today. Olive and I are walking to Sara's house after school.

"So your dad and grandma use to do this stuff?"

"Yeah," I said. "My mom introduced it to them."

"That's cool," she said. "It's also cool that they're doing it on your birthday!"

"Yeah," I said.

**No One's POV**

(Young) Max was walking down the hall with Leo.

"So you're not going to date her?" Leo asked him. "But you like her. You're not even going to asked her out?"

"No, Leo," Max said. "She doesn't need a boyfriend right now, she needs a friend, and that's what I'm going to be."

"When did you become such a sensitive guy?" Leo asked him.

"I guess.." Max thought about it, "when I met her."

"So you're not going to pursue anything with her?" Leo asked. "It's been weeks since that happened."

"No, I want to be what she needs," he said. "For now, I'm going to be her friend until _she _is ready to be something else, if she ever wants to be." He looked over at her standing at her locker. "You didn't see her that night. That jerk made her cry. If I could, he would be in the hospital right now. I don't want her under any pressure."

Max walked up to Alicia.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey." She brushed a strand of hair out of her face. "Before I forget, you and your mom are invited over to my house for a game night this Friday. It'll be fun!"

"I— We'd love to go," Max said.

"Great," Alicia smiled.

**Sydney's POV**

Grandma Judy, Olive, and I were sitting on Sara's couch in the living room. She and dad were in the kitchen together.

"So what game do you want to play first?" Olive asked.

"Monopoly," grandma said.

"I think that's too long," I said.

"No, actually it's Friday, so there shouldn't be a problem," dad said walking into the living room with Sara.

"So, Sydney's mom introduced you to this game night thing?" Olive asked.

"Yeah," dad said. "When Alicia and I were around 14, she invited mom and I over to her house for a game night like this."

"And we've been doing it ever since," grandma Judy said. "I'm glad that you decided to do this, Sara."

"Well, when Max told me about it, I really liked the idea," Sara said. "It's really sweet that you kept the tradition alive. I wanted to be a part of that."

"Well, that's great," grandma said. "You know, I'm liking you more and more every day."

"Well, thank you, Judy," Sara told her.

**No One's POV**

Max and Judy knocked on the door of Alicia's house. She opened the door and when Max saw her, his eyes lit up. She was wearing a yellow dress.

"Hey Max, hey Ms. Reynolds," Alicia said.

"You look beautiful," Max blurted out. This time her eyes lit up.

"Thanks, Max," she said. She blushed. "Where are my manners? Come in." She moved out of the way so they could go inside the house.

Max studied her with his eyes. Something was different. Then he saw it: her hair was shorter than usual, now about shoulder length.

"Did you get a haircut?" He asked.

"Yeah, I did," she said. "Sorry if it looks bad. He cut it shorter than I asked for."

"It looks great," Max said. "It brings out your face more." _Am I crossing a line? _Max thought. _We're friends. Friends can do this, right?_

"Really?" She asked.

"Yeah," Max said. Embarrassed, he changed the subject. "So what game should we play first?"

"Monopoly," Judy said.

"Anytime we ever play a game, it has to be that," Max told Alicia. "But she always rubs it in when she wins." Alicia giggled.

"And he is a sore loser," Judy said. Alicia looked at her, amused. "He flips the board when he loses." She started laughing.

"Do not!" Max said.

"Do too!" Judy told him. "By the way, Sabrina, where's your mom?"

"She went to get the pizza," she said.

"Oh okay," Judy said.

**Sydney's POV**

"I win!" Grandma shouted. "Losers!"

"Great job, mom," dad said, tapping his foot fast.

"You're not going to do what you usually do?" Grandma asked.

"No," dad said. I could tell he was holding back so he wouldn't flip the board in front of Sara.

"Time for cake," Sara said, going to the kitchen. She brought it in and they all sang "Happy Birthday". I blew out the candles.

As we ate our cake, they started handing me presents.

Olive gave me a friendship bracelet.

Dad gave me a condenser microphone.

Grandma gave me a sweater that I really liked. It had music notes on it.

Sara gave me a guitar.

**No One's POV**

Max and Alicia were alone in the living room. Their moms were talking in the kitchen.

"So did you have fun tonight?" She asked him.

"Yeah, I did," Max said.

"Did you mean what you said earlier?" She asked. "That you think I'm beautiful, I mean."

"Yeah, of course," Max said. "I wouldn't lie to you."

"Then you'll answer any question I ask you honestly?"

"Yeah."

"Have you ever kissed anyone?"

"No," he said. "Have you?"

"No," she said. They sat in silence. "Max?"

"Yeah?"

"Would you ever consider kissing me?" She asked. "You know, just to get it over with?"

"Yes and no," he said.

"What do you mean?" She got really nervous.

"I would consider kissing you," he admitted, "but not just to get it over with."

"_Really?!_... I mean, yeah," she said, "not just to get it over with."

"To me, a first kiss should happen because the person is really special to you," he said, "and you could see a future with that person."

"Yeah," she said softly. "Am I special to you?"

"Of course, you're my best friend," Max said. "We've gotten really close."

They looked each other in the eyes.

"You're special to me too," she said. "You've been here for me through a lot." She placed her hand on his. He glanced down at their hand then back at her. They started leaning into each other.

"Max, it's getting late, we should head home," Judy said, coming from the kitchen. Max and Sabrina jumped apart and to opposite sides of the couch.

"Okay mom!" Max almost shouted. He jumped up from the couch and grabbed his jacket. "See you on Monday, Alicia." He looked back at her. She was blushing, looking at him and then down at her lap.

"See you on Monday, Max," she said.

_Did I almost just kiss Alicia Carter? _Max thought to himself. _Does she like me back?_

Judy looked at Max, then Alicia, and back at Max. Her and Max walked out the door.

**_Author's Note: _**_Hope you liked this Chapter! Let me know what you think!_


	8. Chapter 8

**_Author's Note: _**_Sorry I haven't updated this in a while. I wasn't sure what to write next. I started _**_Girl Meets World (Season 7)_**_ and _**_Auggie and Ava: Deleted Scenes_**_. _

_This Chapter contains a sensitive manner. If you do not wish to read about self-harm, I suggest you skip this chapter._

**No One's POV**

(Young) Max walked into school on Monday morning. He hadn't seen Alicia since the game night on Friday. He walked over to her at her locker.

"Hey Alicia," he greeted her.

"Hey," she said. "I have to get to class." She shut her locker and walked passed him. He watched her turn the corner. Leo walked up next to Max.

"That was weird," Max said.

"What was?" Leo asked.

"Alicia was short with me."

"Did you make her mad?" Leo asked.

"No," he said. "I don't know what's up with her."

"Are you sure you didn't make her mad?"

"Yes Leo, I'm sure."

"How'd the game night go?"

"It was fun, we played games, ate pizza and talked," Max said. "Then our moms went to talk in the kitchen, and we started talking about—" Max stopped talking as a look of realization appeared on his face.

"What?" Leo asked.

"I think I know why she was short with me," he said. "I'll talk to you later." He walked away.

**Sydney's POV**

Olive and I were walking to class. She was telling me about her date last night.

"Then you won't believe what happened!"

"What happened, Olive?" I asked, a little annoyed. She won't stop talking about Edward.

"He kissed me!" She said happily. "Our first kiss!"

"Okay, Olive," I said. Now she could tell the tone in my voice.

"Why don't you seem happy for me?"

"I am, I just don't want to hear everything about your relationship."

"Oh, sorry." She looked sad.

"Sorry, Olive," I said. "I just haven't been very happy myself."

"I know, I wasn't try to rub it in," she said.

"I know you weren't."

"Wait…What do you mean you haven't been happy?" She asked. "You seem happy about your dad and Sara."

"Being happy _for_ someone isn't the same as being happy yourself." She stopped me.

"Are you okay, Sydney?"

"Let's get to class," I said.

"No," she said. "What's wrong?" I could see in her face that she wasn't going to budge.

"I've just been feeling unhappy," I said. "I don't know why."

"Well, I'm sure you'll be fine," she said. Those words killed me.

**No One's POV**

Max stopped Alicia outside the cafeteria.

"Wait, Alicia," he said. "Can we talk?"

"I need to get to lunch, Max," she said. She opened the door. He lightly grabbed her arm.

"Please," he said. "I have PBJ. Strawberry, your favorite." He held up his lunch box.

"Okay Max," she said. They walked to her locker and sat down on the floor. "What do you want to talk about?"

"You know," Max said.

"I don't know if we should," she said.

"You've been avoiding me all morning," he said. "I think I know why, but I need you to confirm it." She looked down.

"I don't know where we're supposed to go from the other night, Max," Alicia said. "We almost—"

"Kissed," I finished for her. "We're best friends, Alicia. But to be fair, I wasn't completely honest with you." She looked at him.

"What do you mean?"

"I wouldn't have just not _minded_ you being my first kiss," I said. "I wanted you to be." _Here it goes_, he thought. "I've liked you for a long time, now. I didn't want to pressure you, so I never told you, especially not on the night of the dance. You needed a friend, so I wanted to be that for you."

"I wanted to go with you to the dance," she admitted. He looked shocked. "But you never asked me, so I said yes to that jerk."

"I was about to when you said yes to him," he admitted.

"I would have changed my mind if you had still asked."

"I guess we're both suckers, then," Max said. "So you do like me back?"

"Yeah," she said. I looked into her eyes. We leaned in and kissed. I moved my hand to hers and we shared my PBJ.

**Olive's POV**

There's something up with Sydney. She said she hasn't been happy. I know what Austin did took a toll on her, but I thought she'd be happier by now.

"Hey," I said when I saw her at lunch.

"Hey," she said. She was wearing her jacket still.

"Aren't you hot?"

"No," she said.

"You should probably take your jacket off," I said. "We have PE next."

"I think I'll just skip PE," she said. "I don't feel very well."

"Probably because of your jacket," I said. "Why don't you take it off?"

"I don't want to," she said.

"You're not skipping PE," I said. "If you do, I'll tell your dad."

"You're supposed to be my best friend," she said in a hurt voice. The next thing she said made me know something had to be wrong. "You really don't care about me, do you?"

"Of course I do," I said. "I don't want you to overheat. Why would you think I didn't care about you?"

"Never mind," she said. She threw the contents of her tray and passed me to leave the cafeteria. She didn't eat a bite.

"See you at PE," I called after her.

**No One's POV**

Max and Alicia were now at his house watching TV.

"So, I was thinking," Alicia said.

"Yeah?" Max asked.

"Are we girlfriend and boyfriend? Or what are we?" She asked. "We kissed today. We like each other."

"I'd like if we could be that," Max said. "Wanna go on a date tonight?"

"Where?"

"I don't know," he said, stumped. He thought about it.

"There's a carnival in town," she said. "We could go to that tonight."

"Yeah!" He said smiling. His eyes grew wide. "Oh no, one of our moms will probably be our chaperone!"

"You really think they wouldn't trust us to go alone?" She asked. "We're 14."

"Maybe yours would, but my mom isn't like that," Max said.

"I'm not?" Judy asked, walking into the living room.

"Mom!" Max yelled, freaked out. "I thought you were at work."

"Got off early," she said. "You really think I wouldn't trust you alone with Alicia?"

"Mom, I—" Max started. She cut him off.

"Of course I trust you," Judy said. "A first date should not be chaperoned. My mom did that to me. It was so embarrassing. I like Alicia, I wouldn't want to scare her off. That's why her mom and I went to talk in the kitchen on game night."

"That wasn't a date," Max said.

"Could have turned into one," she said. "Go to the carnival, be a gentleman, and have fun."

"Thanks, Ms. Reynolds," Sabrina said.

"Thanks mom," Max said.

**Olive's POV**

I went to PE and we started playing indoor soccer. I didn't see Sydney. I asked Ms. Joseph if I could go to the bathroom. I went into the bathroom and could hear Sydney's voice coming from a stall.

"Come on," I heard her say. "Stay in place. Stop, please."

"Sydney?" I asked. It went dead silent. I waited for her to say something, but she didn't. "I heard your voice, Syd. I know you're in here. Is everything okay?"

"What are you doing in here Olive?" She asked. She sounded scared.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing, Olive," Sydney said. "Just go back to class." She's lying. I moved to where I could peek into the stall. What I saw made my stomach turn and drop. There was blood on her hand. There was gauze on her other arm. And up her arms were lines, old cuts. Some of them looked recent.

"S-Sydney," I said. "W-what have you done?" I was starting to freak out.

I watched as she hurriedly put her jacket back on. She took wipes out of her bag, wiped off her bloody hand and threw them into the small trashcan in the stall, making sure to hide them under other stuff. She came out of the stall as if nothing happened.

"Sydney," I said.

"Nothing happened," she said. "Okay, Olive? Nothing happened. If you tell anyone, we're not friends anymore." She hurried out of the bathroom. I stood there for a second, trying to collect my thoughts.

"I have to," I told myself. I went to Ms. Joseph and told her she needed to go with me to the bathroom, that it was urgent. I told her what I saw and showed her the wipes in the trashcan. She walked out and went to call Sydney's dad. "I'm sorry, Sydney," I said.


	9. Chapter 9

**_Author's Note: _**_Sorry, that I haven't updated until now. I've been working on my _**_Girl Meets World _**_fanfiction and haven't had much inspiration for continuing this one._

**Sydney's POV**

I sat in my living room. Grandma, Dad, Sara, and Olive were sitting around me. I can't believe Olive told them. I looked over at her. She looked away.

"Syd," dad said. "Why would you do something like this?"

I didn't utter a word.

"Sydney, this is serious," Grandma said. I looked at Olive.

"Get out," I said. "I hate you."

"Sydney!" Dad said.

"Sydney, I had to," Olive said.

"You're not my best friend anymore," I said. "Get out." Olive got up.

"Olive, don't."

"It's okay, Mr. Reynolds." She walked out of the house, closing the door behind her.

**No One's POV**

Max held Alicia's hand as they walked through the hall.

"Hey lovebirds," Leo said starting to walk alongside them.

"Hey Leo," Alicia and Max both said.

"Hey Max, are you coming to work today?"

"Yeah," Max said.

"Hey, I've got to get to class," Alicia said. "I'll see you later, Maxi." She kissed him on the cheek and walked off.

"Maxi?" Leo asked him.

"I like it," he said smiling like a goofball.

"So, _Maxi_," Leo said jokingly. "What are you naming your kids when you get married?"

"Only _she _gets to call me that," he said. "And I don't know."

"I was joking," he said.

"She'd look so beautiful in a wedding dress," Max said.

"You shouldn't be thinking about that yet," Leo said.

"Well, _you_ put it in my head," he said.

"Oh, hey Max!" Alicia said, running to him. He saw her in a wedding dress.

"You're so beautiful, Mrs. Reynolds," Max said, still in his daze.

Sabrina looked at Leo, raising her eyebrows.

"We're not there yet, Max," she laughed. "I just forgot to tell you that my grandma Sydney is coming for a visit this weekend and she wants to meet you."

"Sydney," he said, just staring into space.

"Can you tell him what I said when he comes back?" Sabrina asked Leo.

"Yep," he said. She walked away. "Did you hear anything she just said?" He waved a hand in front of Max's face.

"Huh? What?" Max asked snapping out of his daydream.

"Sabrina's Grandma Sydney is coming this weekend and wants to meet you," Leo said.

"Oh cool," he said. "Dude! That's the perfect name for a girl!"

"Cool?" Leo asked.

"No," Max said. "Sydney. Sydney Reynolds."

"Dude, what were you just daydreaming?"

"None of your beeswax," Max said, walking away.

The bell rang.

"Great, we're late for class," Leo said, walking after Max.

**Sydney's POV**

"Please talk to us, Syd," Dad said.

"We just want to know what's going on," grandma said.

I didn't say a word.

"Give me a few minutes with her," Sara said.

"Sara," Dad said.

"Max," she said, giving him a look.

"Come on, mom," he said. They both got up and left the room. Sara sat by me.

"What Austin did to you was horrible," she said. "But this is not the right way to cope." She looked at my arm. "Neither is breaking a great friendship when she did the right thing."

"I didn't want her to see that," I said.

"She said you said 'No! Stop!' What was that about?"

"It didn't stop bleeding longer than before," I said.

"How long has this been going on?"

"A couple of weeks," I said.

"You need to stop," she said. "We don't want to lose you. We love you. I know it's hard, but you need to try. There can't be a next time, because what if next time, you can't— Please tell me you'll try."

"Why do you care so much?"

"Like I've said before," she said, rolling up her sleeves. "I've been through similar things as you." There were very old, almost completely faded, scars on her arms. "This is not the way to cope. It won't take away the pain, just gives you a different pain."

"Does dad know?"

"Why do you think I had him leave the room?" She rolled her sleeves back down.

"I love you," I said.

"Love you too," she said, hugging me.

**No One's POV**

Max went over to Alicia's house on Saturday. Alicia answered the door. She looked like she had been crying.

"Alicia, are you okay?"

"My Grandma Sydney passed away last night in her sleep," she said. He felt myself ready to cry. He was so ready to meet her.

"I'm so sorry, Alicia," He said. "I love you." She looked at him. He realized they never said that until then.

"Want to come in?" She asked.

"Sure," Max said. He went in and sat down. She started showing him pictures of her grandma and telling him about her.

After a while, Sabrina said "She would have liked you. She was goofy, like you." Max smiled. His beeper went off. He looked at it.

"I need to call my mom," Max said.

"The phone is in the kitchen," she said. He went and called, then went back to the living room.

"I have to go home," Max told Alicia. "Sorry. My mom has dinner ready."

"Okay," she said. "I'll see you on Monday."

"See you then," He said with a smile. He opened the door.

"And Max," she said.

"Yeah?" He asked.

"I love you too," she said. He smiled and walked out the door.

**Sydney's POV**

I went to my room and called Olive. After only one ring she picked up.

"Hey Sydney!" She said. "I'm sorry for telling, but I needed to."

"I know," I said. "You know I don't hate you, right?"

"Of course," she said. "I care about you, Syd."

"I know," I said."

We continued talking on the phone for the rest of the night.


	10. Chapter 10

** _Author's Note: _ ** _So, I was going to end this story with the last chapter, but I decided to do one more chapter._

**Sydney's POV**

It's been about a month since I made up with Olive. I've vowed to never hurt myself again. I have a method to fight it.

I'm sitting on my bed, looking at a picture of my mom and me. I'm finishing writing a song while looking at it. I heard a small knock on my door. I looked up.

"Come in," I said.

"Hey, kiddo," Sara said, as she came into the room.

"Hey," I said. "When did you get here?"

"A few minutes ago," she said. "Max said you'd be in here."

"Oh okay," I said.

"How'd you feel about going for a girls' day with me and your grandma?" She asked.

"Can Olive come too?" I asked.

"Yeah, definitely," she said. "We had invited Emmy and Sofia too, but they had other plans."

"When are we leaving?" I asked.

"Once you're ready," she said.

"I'm ready!" I said, jumping up.

"What's that?" She motioned to my song.

"Oh, that's a song I just finished writing," I said.

"This is great," she said, looking at both the lyrics and the sheet music.

"Thanks," I said.

"So, you're ready?"

"Yeah," I said.

**No One's POV**

(Young) Max walked over to Alicia's house. He knocked on her door and she answered.

"Hey," he greeted her.

"Hi Maxi," she said.

"I was wondering if you'd like to go to the skatepark with me," Max said. "I'm competing for something awesome."

"Aren't you supposed to be working today?"

"No, I'm off today," I said.

"Well, I'm really busy today," she said.

"Oh," Max said.

"Sorry," she said.

"It's fine," he said. "See you later."

**Sydney's POV**

"So, did that relax you Syd?" Sara asked me. She was driving the car.

"Yeah," I said.

"Good," she said.

I looked out the window as she stopped the car. What I saw was a recording studio.

"What are we doing here?" I asked.

"Well, I was thinking you could finally record some of your songs," she said.

"Really?" I asked, getting out of the car.

"Yeah," she said. "It'll take a couple months to get it completely mixed and mastered, though."

We walked into the recording studio. Someone was sitting at the mixing table.

"Hey Ryan," Sara said. "We're here."

The guy turned around. My eyes grew wide.

"That's Ryan Tedder," I said.

"Yep," Sara said.

"Sara, how are you?" He asked giving her a hug.

"I'm good," she said. "This is my boyfriend, Max's, daughter, Sydney, her grandma, Judy, and her best friend, Olive."

He looked at me.

"Sara tells me you have some awesome songwriting skills," he says, "and a voice to go with it."

"So, what are we doing today?" I asked.

"Well, I was thinking that we could record a couple of your songs," Ryan said. "I think 'Find My Own Way' should be one of them."

"Yeah, I like that idea," I said.

"And maybe you can perform that song you wrote today at my show tonight," Sara said.

"I don't know if it would be ready," I said.

"Well, then maybe we should make it ready," Ryan said.

I smiled.

**Max's POV**

I was sitting at the table, trying to think of what to do. Then my phone started to ring. I answered.

"Hello?" I answered. "Yes, this is he." I listened. "It's ready?! That's great! I'll be right there."

I scrambled to get my keys and ran out the door.

**No One's POV**

(Young) Max was sitting above a dip, watching other people skateboard.

"Hey Max, you okay?" Leo asked him, as he sat next to him.

"I really wanted Alicia to come," I said.

"Well, what did she say?"

"She said she was really busy today," I said.

Leo looked behind his shoulder.

"Apparently not," Leo said.

"What?" Max asked. Max looked behind his shoulder. Alicia was walking towards them.

"I'll see you later, buddy," Leo told him. He stood up and walked away. Alicia sat next to Max.

"Why aren't you skateboarding?" She asked him.

Max looked down.

"I thought you weren't coming," he said.

"I'm sorry, I lied before," she said. "I wasn't busy."

"The competition hasn't started yet," he told her. "Why did you lie?"

"I—" She looked down, lost for words.

"What's wrong?" Max asked her, concerned.

"My dad died in action," she said. "He'd been deployed for over a year."

"I'm so sorry, Alicia," he said. "You didn't have to come."

"I wanted to," she said. "You make me feel better, especially watching you do what you love."

Max smiled.

**Sydney's POV**

We were listening back to the rough recording of my new song.

"** _I know you'll be looking down, swear I'm gonna make you proud, I'll be livin' one life for the two of us."_ **

Ryan stopped the track.

"Wow!" I said. "That's amazing already!"

"It's your heart showing itself," Sara said, "of course it's amazing."

"Thank you, Sara," I said, hugging her. "I love you."

"I love you too, Syd," she said. She looked at our watch. "I'm sorry, Ryan, we need to get home to get ready for the concert."

"Performing this tonight, Syd?" Ryan asked me.

"Yeah," I said. "I am."

"Good," he said, "I'll be looking forward to it. See you later."

**No One's POV**

"And the winner is Max Reynolds!" The announcer said. Max ran up to get his prize. He could see his mom, Leo, and Alicia cheering in the sidelines.

They handed him a necklace.

"Thanks," he said. "Alicia can you come over here?"

Confused, Alicia walked over to Max.

"One reason I wanted you here, is because I wanted to win this for you," he said. "May I?"

She smiled.

"Yeah," she said. She turned around and he put the necklace on her. It had a crystal angel on it.

"This is perfect," she said.

He smiled at her.

** _Present_ **

Max looked at the same necklace holding it up while sitting on the couch.

"Here she comes!" Sara said.

Sydney walked down the stairs, wearing a nice white dress that Sara had gotten her.

"You look beautiful," Max said. "You know what would go perfect with this look?"

"What?" Sydney asked.

"This," he said, holding up the necklace.

"That's mom's," she said.

"And that's why it would look perfect on you," he said. She lifted up her hair and he put it on her. "See? _Perfect_." They both smiled.

**Sydney's POV**

"So, the last song will be performed by someone I love as my own," Sara said. "Please help me introduce Sydney Reynolds."

I hugged her and sat down at the piano.

"I wrote this song to my mom who passed away a few years ago." I touched the necklace, then started playing the piano.

** _It's been a while since I've seen you/ At times, I feel all alone/ But in my head, I hear you whisper/ "Don't you worry, I'm home"/ This mornin' I woke up still dreamin'/ With memories playin' through my head/ You'll never know how much I miss you/ The day that they took you, I wished it was me instead/_ **

** _But you once told me "Don't give up/ You can do it day by day/ And diamonds, they don't turn to dust/ Or fade away"_ **

I looked at dad and Sara. He's holding her in his arms.

Olive joined in with background vocals.

** _So, I will keep you day and night/ Here until the day I die/ I'll be livin' one life for the two of us/_ **

I could see Sara singing along.

** _ I will be the best of me/ Always keep you next to me/ I'll be livin' one life for the two of us/ Even when I _ **

The rest of the band joined in.

** _hold my own/ I know I won't be alone/ Tattooed on my heart, are the words of your favorite song/ I know you'll be looking down/ Swear I'm gonna make you proud/ I'll be livin' one life for the two of us_ **

I saw Ryan.

** _I can feel your blood run through me/ You're written in my DNA/ Looking back in every mirror/ I know you'll be waitin', I'll see you again/_ **

** _But you once told me "Don't give up/ You can do it day by day/ And diamonds, they don't turn to dust/ Or fade away"_ **

** _So, I will keep you day and night/ Here until the day I die/ I'll be livin' one life for the two of us/ I will be the best of me/ Always keep you next to me/ I'll be livin' one life for the two of us/ Even when I hold my own/ I know I won't be alone/ Tattooed on my heart, are the words of your favorite song/ I know you'll be looking down/ Swear I'm gonna make you proud/ I'll be livin' one life for the two of us_ **

** _I promised you I'd do this/ So all of this is all for you/ Oh, I swear to God, you live in/_ **

Dad turned Sara towards him. He talked to me a week ago.

** _ Through everything I'll ever do_ **

** _So, I will keep you day and night/ Here until the day I die/ I'll be livin' one life for the two of us/ I will be the best of me/ Always keep you next to me/ I'll be livin' one life for the two of us/_ **

Dad dropped to one knee in front of her, pulling out the ring I helped him pick out. Sara started crying while she nodded her head 'yes'.

** _Even when I hold my own/ I know I won't be alone/ Tattooed on my heart, are the words of your favorite song/ I know you'll be looking down/ Swear I'm gonna make you proud/ I'll be livin' one life for the two of us/ One life for the two of us/ I'll be livin' one life for the two of us_ **

** _We'll end it just like we started/ Just you and me and no one else/ I'll hold you where my heart is/ One life for the two of us_ **

After we finished the song, the crowd erupted. I smiled. Dad, Sara, Grandma, and Olive wrapped me in a hug.

"That was amazing, Noodle!" Grandma said. "If your mom can hear that from Heaven, I know she loves it!"

"Thanks Grandma," I said.

"And Sara," she said, Sara looked towards her, "Welcome to the family!"

"Thank you, Judy," she said. "We're engaged!" She smiled joyfully.

"I love you, Sara," dad said.

"I love you too," she told him. They kissed.

"Sydney!" I heard Emmy and Sofia yell. I turned around and saw them running towards me. "That was amazing!"

"Thanks girls!" I said. "I thought you had other plans."

"No, we just didn't want to interfere with your recording session," Sofia said.

"Olive said that you're going be releasing a song soon," Emmy said. "Is that true?"

"Yeah, but I don't know which one to do," I said.

"The one you just performed," Sofia told me.

"Definitely," Emmy agreed with her.

"Thanks," I said. I turned around back to my family. "We have an engagement to celebrate!"

"Why don't you pick what we'll do, Sara?" Dad offered.

"Pizza party?" She asked. Everyone agreed. We left to go to _Pizza & Gamez_ to celebrate.

** _Author's Note: _ ** _This is where it ends. Hope you liked it! I thought this was the perfect ending._

_The song I used for this chapter is **Two of Us **by **Louis Tomlinson** with different lyrics in part of the first verse. Sydney wrote it in this fanfic for her mom._


End file.
